It was a solid debut for the new Sherwood Park Archers inline (roller) hockey team.

Even if the players themselves had no idea that said debut was an unofficial one.

The Archers are one of five teams in the newly-created AB Pro Roller Hockey League, joining the Calgary Outlaws, Edmonton Panthers, Red Deer Reign and the Spruce Grove Wheelin’ Phantoms for play in the inaugural campaign.

“It’s semi-pro, depending on which franchise you play for,” said Archers owner/GM Brent Hartwell. “It is designed to be an elite men’s league in Alberta. The age range is 18 and up, although there are three under-agers allowed.”

The Archers kicked off their season with a convincing 9-1 victory over Spruce Grove last Friday, although at the time, they didn’t know that the contest didn’t count. At least not for them.

“We didn’t have a balanced schedule,” Hartwell said. “One team had to play 10 games so that everybody else would have nine games. We were the team that they asked to play an extra one. Our first game didn’t actually count for us, while it did for them. We are 0-0, yet Spruce Grove is 0-1.

“Nonetheless, that was a very encouraging start for us. In terms of it being an exhibition game for us, what we saw on the ice left me very excited. We (Hartwell and head coach Sam Nixon) decided not to tell the guys that it didn’t count because we wanted to go out there and see what we had and we owed the rest of the league to put on a competitive game.”

The Archers, who chose as a group to return to the Park’s Robin Hood roots by opting for the team name and colours, will make their actual debut this Friday in Ardrossan against Red Deer.

Long considered a hotbed for developing national-level players for inline hockey, Hartwell knew Sherwood Park had to be a part of the new provincial league and was eager to enter a squad.

“I love the sport and I wanted to grow the sport,” he said. “I felt something like this was long overdue. My son has played for about the last 10 years and I have really come to love this sport.

“It’s very exciting, for multiple reasons. I am excited to see the league up and running. Watching the product for one game, that was already impressive. These guys move fast, move the puck well and are playing inline at a level that I have only rarely seen. I am also excited about the group of people I am with. I have a great group of people with me, which is awesome.”

The Archers certainly had a strong field of candidates from which to field a team, with numerous Park players suiting up in international events in the past and a number of college players in the fold, including goalie Ewen MacPherson, who has won a NAIA National Championship with his Bethel University Team from Mackenzie Tennessee, to go with a bronze and a gold with the IIHF world inline team; and Cole Sonstelie, who also won an NAIA National Championship with Bethel.

“I am so happy with this group,” Hartwell said. “The skill level, the commitment, the professionalism, it is off the charts already.”

The hope is that the Alberta league will soon inspire other provinces to do something similar.

“We want to help other provinces with our model,” Hartwell said. “We want them to do it too and then hopefully have things like Western Canadian championships and stuff like that down the line.”

The Archers only play two games in Strathcona County this season due to the difficulties of planning out the first schedule and a lack of facilities capable of installing proper inline surfaces for play.

The first of those games is at 8 p.m. this Friday (May 18) at the Ardrossan Recreation Complex.

“We are cautiously optimistic we can have a good first crowd,” Hartwell said. “With it being the Friday of a long weekend, we understand a lot of people will be out camping and stuff. We are hoping to see some people in the stands.

“We have five home games, but only two of them are actually here. We want to show the league that more games should be in Ardrossan in the future and that we can put on a good show. We only want to put these athletes on tile floors and there are a shortage of places that have them. They are very expensive. Ardrossan, Spruce Grove and Red Deer are the only places in Alberta that have them right now. With the travel involved, it is easier to meet in Red Deer for a lot of the games, at least for this first season.”

Their only other true home game is on Friday, June 8 against Spruce Grove, also in Ardrossan.

There is no charge for games during the inaugural season.

More details on the AB Pro League can be found at www.albertaprorollerhockey.ca.